Grain-separator



G; LULL Screen for Grain Wnnowers'.

No. 32,071. .Patented A-p111 115, 1861.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEicE. l

GEORGE LULL, OF HARDIN, IO\VA.

GRAIN-SEPARATOR.

Specification of Letters Patentl No. 32,071, dated April 16, 1861.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, GEORGE LULL, of Hardin, in the county of Clayton andState of Iowa, have invented anew and Improved @haft-Screen forVVinnowing-Machines and I do hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which-Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through a winnowing machine,containing the improved screens, t-aken in the vertical plane indicatedby the red line ai, a; in Fig. 2. Fig. 2, is an end view of a winnowingmachine showing the improved screens. Fig. 3, is a plan view of aportion of an improved screen. Fig. 4, is a section through Fig. 4.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the severalfigures.

This invention has for its object the more perfect separation of oatsfrom wheat by the employmenty of one or more screens of corrugated metalplates, having oblong or elliptical perforations through them betweenthe corrugations, the longest diameter of said perforations being inlines at right angles to the corrugations; thereby allowing grains ofwheat etc. to pass freely through the screens and causing the oats topass over the screen or screens 1n lines parallel with the corrugations,or elevated surfaces of the screens, all as will be `hereinafter fullyexplained.

To enable those skilled in the art to make and use my invention I willproceed to describe its construction and operation.

In Figs. 1, 2, 3, and fl, A, A represent the improved .screensl Figs. 1and 2 show the arrangement of two of these improved screens, A, A intheir proper positions in a common winnowing machine consisting of theusual frame B, fan box C, fan C', hopper D, and inclined Hoor E whichlatter receives and conducts oft' the wheat which falls through thescreens A, A. The fan C is rotatedby means of spur wheels a, 5 and handAcrank c. The shaft Z of pinion wheel b, carries two cams e, e, near eachend and inside of the frame A which cams strike and give an endwisemotion to connecting rods F, F; rods F, F, are pivoted at their rearends to the sides of the screen box G, and as this box is hung by shortarms g, g, the rods F, F, transmit rapid shaking motion to the screensA, A. These screens A, A incline toward `the rear end of the machine andas the wheat, "mixed with oats, passes over these screens A, A the wheatfalls through them and the oats pass 01T, thus separating the one fromthe other. The spring' H is used to keep the ends ofrods F, F in contactwith the'cams e, e.

Thus it will be seen that the general construction of the machine andthe arrangement of the improved. screens are in no essential featurealtered from machines which are commonlyused for winnowing grain. It istherefore to the construction of the screens that my invention relates.These screens A, A are both alike in construction and they consist ofplates of sheet metal which are passed between suitable corrugatingrollers, or a bending machine adapted to the purpose, that forms theelevated portions 7L, h, lt, L and the (nearly) flat portions z', z',z', z', z', thus forming a corrugated plate with its surface made upalternately of narrow elevations running from end to end ofthe plate inlines parallel to each otherand wide depressions, all of which latterare in the same plane. The spaces between the ribbed elevations it, 7L,11 L are sutliciently wide to allow grains of wheat to pass throughthem, but these spaces are not wide enough for oats, unless the oats areturned endwise. These rounded edges of the ribs L, 7b, it, L have theeffect of turning the oats as they fall upon the screens and causingthem to pass endwise over the screens through the channels or spacesbetween the ribs it, h., h, 71,.

The depressed portions of the screens are perforated with ellipticalholes, t, t, t, t

which allow the grains of wheat to pass freely through the screens butprevent the oats from passing through.

The operation of the machine is as follows: the grains ofv wheat mixedwith oats are put into hopper` D and flow from the bottom of this hopperdirectly on the upper screen A; the oats, together with the grains ofwheat are shaken into the channels z', z'

between ribs 7L, It, 7L, L above described and` the wheat falls throughthe holes t, t, t, t in the bottom of these channels, leaving the oatsto pass olf from the lower end of the screen. The lower screen A whichis constructed like the upper one, is used to separate any of the oatswhich might fall through the first screen in consequence of the grainbanking up under the outlet of the hopper D. The inclined board E of Iclaim as neWand desire to secure by Lethopper D is fitted in guides, sothat it may ters Patent is be adjusted for regulating the flow of grainThe screen or screens constructed With a from the. outlet, the bankingup of the grain ribbed and channeled surface, and having l5 5 on theupper screens may thus be prevented elongated perforations through thebottom by retarding the ovv from the hopper. of the channelssubstantially as and for the The grains of Wheat fall on inclined boardpurposes herein described and shown.

E and are delivered at one end of the nia- GEORGE LULL.

chine and the oats are delivered at the op- Witnesses:

10 posite end. R. T. BURNHAM,

Having thus described my 1nvention,vvhat CYRUS BATES.

